Chapter 5: Expelled

Dali believed that Pel was satisfied with her explanation. She didn't ask any other questions. None. She did notice that Pel seemed rather distant. When Dali tried to joke with her Pel just stared. She seemed rather sad. She didn't even complain in Siame's class.
She was like a mechanical doll. Dali didn't know what to do. Pel even got up on her own. The day after she had met him she went to get Pel up and when she touched her Pel started screaming. She had no idea what to do. Pel wouldn't even eat lunch with her. Dali was afraid that maybe her soul had been sucked out. This day was a little different. Dali couldn't find Pel sitting anywhere for lunch. She asked around and finally someone had told her they had seen her by the Boy's Academy. Dali went over there looking for her. She found something else. Vey was sitting there on the bench. He looked up at her.
"Your friend is with your brother." 
Dali looked at him. They had promised not to show their feelings around others. She couldn't help but shiver. She wanted to be with him so badly. 
"Sit down. No one will suspect."
"They will only because it's you."
He smiled. She sat down next to him. "Yukii is over there." He pointed.
Dali looked in that direction. There he was with Pel. She was worried. Pel always did stupid stuff when it came to her brother. "Vey," Dali turned to face him. "Do you think she might have seen us?" 
He touched her cheek. "They have now."
Dali whipped her head the other direction. Yukii was running to her and Pel was trotting right behind. Vey stood up. Dali stood as well. She looked frightened. Yukii looked like he would kill her. But he went right for Vey. Yukii knocked him to the ground. They were going about it rather physically. Both of them beating the crap out of the other.
Vey was losing to Yukii and he couldn't deal with that. Both of them were doing this for Dalia. Dali didn't want either of them to do this. "Iieeeeeeeehhh!!!!" Dalia was crying. "Please stop. PLEASE!" 
Yukii stood up and glared at Dali. "I told you and I told him. I didn't want either of you near the other." Dali's tears wouldn't stop.
Vey picked himself up. "I'll do as I wish."
"Not with my sister!" Yukii started to whisper.
Vey recognized it. He started muttering the words to counter.
"Fire!" Yukii summoned a fire spirit.
"Summon barrier!" Vey built a wall that the spirit couldn't burn.
Dalia started screaming. Pel was horrified. She had no clue either could do this.
"Eis thith von les to gosht mirenai VAT!" she didn't break concentration.
"DALIA NO!" Pel started screaming. She knew if she didn't do something it would be a disaster. 
The sky turned pitch black. The wind started blowing like a hurricane. Vey and Yukii lost concentration and the spells crumbled. Everyone started screaming. She started to levitate. Dali opened her eyes. They had turned blood red. Yukii couldn't stop looking into her eyes. Vey grabbed him.
"DON'T LOOK!" The wind howled. "I don't want to know what the hell she summoned but it's not good."
Pel cast a vault barrier around the boys that were there. "She cast a high level soul spell!" If she doesn't steal your soul, hers will be taken!" She turned to Vey and Yukii. "I assume you BOTH can keep up this barrier? She'll die if I don't stop her!" They agreed. They held up the barrier while Pel cat her spell. "Matis ergo lethe no chppu." She hesitated. What's next? Oh Goddess! "Ves to shippu no..." Pel couldn't keep it up. The spell was too strong for her. 
"Ves to shippu no gorothe para tle VAT TO FOR!"
The words were very clear. Dali's eyes closed and she fell to the ground. Pel broke the barrier spell. Vey and Yukii were both beaten and weak. The other boys were looking around. No one knew where that voice had come from. Lady Wisteria and Master Kalothei came running out. Pel looked at Wisteria. "Thank the goddess! I couldn't hold that spell. If you hadn't helped..." 
Lady Wisteria looked at Pel. "I didn't do anything Pelegrath."
Pel was confused. "If you didn't, who did?" 
She shook her head. "I don't know."
Kalothei picked up Dalia and carried her to the Girl's Academy hospital wing.
Pel explained what had happened. 

	Dali woke a week later still in the hospital wing. She sat up slowly.
Geny came into the room. "Dali, you're up!" She called out the door. "Dalia's awake!"
Lady Wisteria came into the room. "How do you feel Dalia?"
"I feel like crap."
"How did you learn that spell? The Soul Steal?" 
"I don't know. I just wanted them to stop. It was already in my head."
Geny stared. "Dali you could have died."
"Dali looked up at Geny. "I felt like I was dying. Like my soul was being ripped out of my body. I could feel someone else in my head. I've never felt that."
Lady Wisteria looked at Dali. "You summoned a Vature. They possess your body until they take a soul. If they can't get one, they take yours. Dalia, no one knows that spell anymore. It's not written anywhere. The elves are the only ones who remember the counter spell. If it weren't for Pel, you would be dead."
Dali couldn't believe it. Pel burst into the room. "DALIA!" She threw her arms around her. "I thought you were gonna die. I'm sorry Dali I didn't know the counter spell. I could only remember some of it! I tried to save you!"
"Pel, you used the counter?"
"No, I only did some of it. Someone else finished. But no one knows who."
"I saw someone there. When that thing was in my head. I heard the counter and it was clawing at my mind. I heard it loudly. I could see like I was outside my body. There was a woman in white. She had gold hair and gold eyes. I felt her push my soul back in my body. It was so bizarre."
"There's no one like that here Dali." Lady Wisteria looked at Geny.
Geny put a cloth on Dali's head. "She's right, I've never seen anyone like that."
Pel jumped up with her hands clasped. "It mush have been the Goddess Umoleth! It wasn't Dali's time so she pushed her soul back!"
They all looked around at each other. Dali lay back. She wasn't so sure, but it was a nice thought. Geny and Lady Wisteria left Pel with Dalia.
	
	"Dalia, I'm sorry. This wouldn't have happened if I had not gone to Yukii."
"Why did you go Pel?"
Pel looked at the ground. "I followed you. I was happy at first, you had a boyfriend. But when I saw it was him...I didn't know what to do. I told you to stay away from him! Yukii told you! Why did you go to see him during the day?"
"I was looking for you Pel. I found him first. I don't know what it is about him. He makes me crazy and happy and everything at the same time. I just wish Yukii would listen to me. Vey isn't that bad."
"Well you can't tell either of them now."
"Why? I don't understand."
"They were expelled Dali."
"Expelled!"
"Not just from the academy, but from Kalan! You know the price of magic Dali. You better than anyone should know!"
"I told Vey to stop, but he's right you know. Why can't men use magic?"
"Dalia! You saw what they did! That's why men can't use magic. They can't be happy just beating each other up with their fists. They want to annihilate the other!"
"I told them to stop."
"They did it for you Dali. Both of them. Yukii did it to protect his sister and Vey did it to protect his pride."
"Vey wasn't hurting me." Dali's eyes welled up with tears. "He didn't do anything."
"You liked him. He was using you Dali."
Using? "No! He truly liked me back!"
Geny came back in. "Pelegrath, Dalia needs her rest."
"I'll see you tomorrow Dalia." Pel turned to leave.
"Pel, how long have I been here?"
"A week." She left the room.
Dali turned on her side. A week! Her eyes filled with tears. She lay sobbing.
She looked out the window. It was nighttime. "A moon just for the two of us. Destiny huh?" She curled up. I'll never see him again. A black fuzzball bounced onto the bed.
Dali sat up. "Crisith!" The cat looked at her. His whiskers tickled her face. "Mew."
He tried to cheer her up. She hugged his fuzzy body. "Oh Crisith, where have you been? Did you miss me?" "Mew."
She snuggled up to him and fell asleep. 

	Dalia's dreams were troubled she was in another time witnessing a hanging. As everyone cheered and clapped, Dali threw-up. All of a sudden everything went black and she was alone.  It was too dark for Dali to like. Then right in front of her a figure in black materialized. Dali was getting more frightened. Then the figure raised a hand and said "There will always be something you have to protect."  All of a sudden it vanished.
Dali woke with a start. "Something to protect?" She had this dream before, the one about the woman dying, but she never had spoken to her. The sun was barely rising. The sky looked fuzzy. Crisith was gone. Dali stood up. She went to her room. Pel was sleeping soundly. She went over to her dresser. Pel had placed a little note on top. 
I believe in my soul.
Dali smiled. She folded the paper and went to place it in the box on top of the dresser. Another paper fell out. Vey's note. Dali dropped to her knees. She clutched the paper. Something to protect? I have nothing to protect. Dali started crying again. I'll never see him again. She put both pieces of paper in the box and went back to the hospital room.
She climbed back into the bed. The door closed. Dali looked at the door. Vey stood there.
She jumped up. "Vey! I thought I'd never see you again."
"I'm sorry about this Dali. I never meant to use my magic around people. And I never meant to use it against your brother."
Dali looked at him. "I never thought that, you know, that would happen. What I did I mean. I'm not even sure what I did."
"I saw what you did. I can't even imagine what power you have if you can use a spell that has been lost for the last 500 years."
"Were you just using me? Or did you really mean those things you said out there?"
 "What?"
"I said were you using me?"
He came closer to her. "I was not lying to you. I'm sorry if you thought so. I would never lie to you." He put his arms around her. "I'm sorry."
She didn't want him to go. "Destiny huh? I guess we weren't meant to be like this forever."
"I can't see you again. If they find me here in Kalan they'll kill me."
"What happened to Yukii?"
"He's gone to the Obsidian City."
She winced. "I knew it."
He kissed her. "Good-bye Dalia. You will always be in my universe."
She closed her eyes. And he was gone. Two men she loved were gone. She lay back down. A few hours passed. She constantly thought about Vey and Yukii. About the Obsidian City. She knew they would both go there. She knew Vey believed the same as the sorcerers in that city, but what about Yukii? Did he believe it?
Dali didn't know what to think anymore. Was Pel right? Men shouldn't use magic because of what they would do with it. Was Vey right? Men shouldn't be punished because of the past.

	Geny came into the room. "Dali you're awake? You have a visitor."
Rumi walked into the room. "Sisi!"
Dali sat up. "Rumi!" 
He ran over to her and threw his arms around her. "Everyone's talking about what happened. Did you really try to kill everyone?"
"No silly." Dali didn't really want to tell Rumi anything.
"Are you better yet Dali? Do you want to eat lunch with me?"
"Sure." Dali smiled. She looked at Rumi run to the door. 
She stood up and followed him. She hoped that it would only get better.
"Come on Sisi!"
She smiled faintly. "I know..." Something to protect...